1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates in general to certain new and useful improvements in an infant head support for use with infant retaining devices, and more particularly, to an infant head support which is adapted to be easily removably positioned in an infant retaining device for laterally supporting the head of an infant.
2. Background Discussion of the Prior Art
It has long been recognized that it is necessary to support the head of an infant due to the fact that the neck muscles of the infant have not developed to the point where they are capable of supporting the head. Failure to adequately support the head of an infant, even when carrying the infant, can result in a severe injury to, if not a fatality of the infant.
There is a need for an infant head support in both static and dynamic situations. In the static situation, that is, when there is no movement of the infant in a retaining device, there is a need to preclude the head of the infant from rolling from an erect position, or a position of alignment with the torso, to a position where it engages a shoulder. When the infant's head is aligned with the torso, there is no neck muscle fatigue and the infant is capable of sleeping or resting more comfortably.
There is a more pronounced need for infant head support in a dynamic situation, that is, when the retaining device adopts the form of a transporting device and the infant is being moved. In these transporting devices, a movement of the device, as in a turning action, will cause the infant's head to roll to one side toward a shoulder. The need of a head support is even more critical when protecting the infant's head against a sudden jolting movement, as for example, in the case of a sudden impact. This type of movement can be significantly hazardous to the infant, resulting in injury, if not fatality, as mentioned above.
Notwithstanding the well recognized need to support the head of an infant, many types of baby equipment are designed without this requirement for head support. This is particularly true in the case of baby carriages, strollers, swings, auxiliary vehicle seats such as car seats, and the like. As a simple example, in the case of a stroller, safety devices, such as a seat restraining strap and the like, are included. However, there is no feature within the seat portion of the stroller to support the head of the infant. This is particularly distressing in the situation where many of these devices are designed specifically for infants and children of relatively early ages.
In recent years, the use of seat belts for retaining passengers in automotive vehicles, and particularly, passenger automobiles, has been recognized as a significant measure in saving the lives and reducing injuries to the vehicle occupants in the event of a collision or other accident. Moreover, the retention of children and particularly, infants, in auxiliary automotive seats, often referred to as "car seats", has also become recognized as a significant measure in reducing the incidence of death or serious injury to children in automotive vehicles as a result of accidents or collisions. Furthermore, many governmental agencies have enacted laws which mandate the use of auxiliary automotive vehicle seats for children under certain ages, and particularly, for use with infants.
The conventional automotive auxiliary seat for children is adapted to be secured to the conventional seat of the automobile, usually with the available seat belt harness. Moreover, these vehicle seats have been proven to be highly effective for children of one year of age and older, since children of these ages have significantly developed neck muscles to the point that they are at least somewhat capable of preventing their heads from being jolted severely in the event of a vehicle accident or collision. However, children generally under one year of age have not significantly developed neck muscles to the point that they are capable of controlling the movement of their head in the event of a serious collision of the vehicle and which might result in the sudden throwing or jolting of their head from side to side.
The conventional auxiliary automotive vehicle seats which are adapted to retain children are usually constructed so that they are capable of retaining children over a large age range. Thus, the conventional auxiliary automotive vehicle seat may be adapted to hold a child from age one month to about five years. It may be appreciated that over this time span, the size of the child will significantly increase. As a result, the auxiliary car seats must be constructed so that they are capable of receiving a child commensurate with the size in the oldest of this age range. Thus, the vehicle seat is not particularly adapted to adequately and properly support the head of an infant.
There has been at least one proposed vehicle seat device which is adapted to assume excess space between at least portions of an infant's body and an automotive vehicle seat. This device is essentially a slab of foam-like material formed with a shallow recess designed to somewhat conform to the contour of the infant's body, and is hereinafter described in more detail. However, this type of device is not very effective in that it does not adequately support the head of an infant, if at all, when carried in a vehicle seat.
There is another auxiliary vehicle seat device which is provided for filling the excess space between an infant retaining device and the head and body of an infant and which is commercially offered under the name "Heads Up". This "Head's Up" device is comprised of a flexible cloth back and an inverted U-shaped roll on the upper end of the cloth back. The roll is also comprised of a flexible cloth fabric with about one to one and one-half inch thickness. This latter device is promoted as being capable of extending about the head of an infant to provide support. However, this device essentially has no body or structural integrity and therefore, can provide little or no head support.
This latter prior art device, known as "Heads Up", is not effective in either a static mode or a dynamic mode since it essentially has no form-fit, that is, it does not conform to the head of an infant. Therefore, users of this device have found more effective results in wrapping a towel or other cloth material in the form of a roll to extend about the head of the infant and, in effect, wedge the head of the infant between the side walls of the retaining device.
In addition to the foregoing, the "Heads Up" prior art device is not easily affixed to or readily removeable from many of the infant retaining devices, and particularly, the auxiliarly automobile seats. This device must be secured to the auxiliarly seats by means of the shoulder straps or shoulder harness forming a part of the seat, and it is not only difficult, but it is time consuming to install and to remove.